César Joel Valencia Castillo (born 16 November 1994) is an Ecuadorian footballer who plays as a winger for Liga okręgowa club Partyzant Leszno.
Valencia is a product of the Real Zaragoza academy and later played in Slovenia and Poland, rising to prominence in the latter country with Piast Gliwice. Following four years in England with Brentford, during which he predominantly played away on loan, he returned to Poland in 2023, where he played for Zagłębie Sosnowiec and Znicz Pruszków until his retirement from professional football in 2026. Valencia was capped by Spain and Ecuador at U17 level.
Club career
Spain A winger, Valencia joined the Real Zaragoza academy in 2005, at age 11. By 2011, he had progressed into the club's reserve team and was called into the first team squad on three occasions during the 2011–12 season. Valencia made his only senior appearance for the club as a substitute for Pablo Barrera late in a 6–0 La Liga defeat to Real Madrid on 28 August 2011. He spent much of the following three years in the reserve team and on loan at Málaga B, before departing La Romareda to join Segunda División B club Logroñés in August 2014. He remained with Logroñés until January 2016 and made 54 appearances for the club, scoring one goal.
Slovenia and Poland On 27 January 2016, Valencia moved to Slovenia to join PrvaLiga club Koper. He made 28 appearances and scored two goals during 18 months at the Bonifika Stadium, before departing to join Polish Ekstraklasa club Piast Gliwice in August 2017, one a one-year contract, with a three-year option. Valencia was a part of the club's 2018–19 Ekstraklasa-winning team and his exploits were recognised with the Ekstraklasa and Polish Union of Footballers Player of the Year awards and a place in the Polish Union of Footballers Team of the Year. By the time of his departure in late July 2019, he had made 65 appearances and scored 9 goals for the club.
Brentford On 31 July 2019, Valencia moved to England to join Championship club Brentford on a four-year contract for an undisclosed fee, reported to be £1.8 million. Despite making 23 appearances and scoring one goal, he struggled to adapt to the pace of English football during the 2019–20 season. Valencia's 24th and final Brentford appearance came as a late substitute in the opening match of the 2020–21 season.
Valencia played much of the remaining three years of his contract away on loan and Brentford's promotion to the Premier League at the end of the 2020–21 season pushed him further down the pecking order. He played for Polish Ekstraklasa club Legia Warsaw, Spanish Segunda División club AD Alcorcón and Dutch Eerste Divisie club De Graafschap. Valencia suffered a plethora of injury problems and made a combined 51 appearances for the three clubs.
Return to Poland On 14 July 2023, Valencia returned to Poland to sign a two-year contract with I liga club Zagłębie Sosnowiec on a free transfer. He made 26 appearances and scored one goal during the 2023–24 season, which culminated in relegation to the II liga. Valencia made 32 appearances and scored two goals during a mid-table 2024–25 season. He suffered a lung contusion during the final match of the season, on which he underwent surgery. Valencia was released when his contract expired and he made 58 appearances and scored one goal during his two seasons with the club.
In September 2025, Valencia began training with I liga club Znicz Pruszków. He was announced as the club's player on 3 October and signed an undisclosed-length contract on a free transfer. Valencia made just three appearances prior to the termination of his contract by mutual consent on 14 January 2026.
In March 2026, Valencia announced his retirement from professional football and transferred to Liga okręgowa club Partyzant Leszno. He made 14 appearances during the remainder of a mid-table 2025–26 season.
International career Valencia was capped by Spain and Ecuador at U17 level. He was a part of Ecuador's 2011 FIFA U17 World Cup squad and made three appearances at the tournament.
Personal life Valencia was born in Quinindé, Esmeraldas, Ecuador and moved to Spain in 2002, at age 8. He has a Spanish passport. Valencia's partner, actress Paulina Chapko, gave birth to their child in July 2022.
Career statistics
+ Appearances and goals by club, season and competitionClubSeasonLeagueNational cupLeague cupEuropeOtherTotalDivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsZaragoza2011–12La Liga1000———10Zaragoza B2011–12Segunda División B Group 3190————1902012–13Segunda División B Group 2140————1402013–14Tercera División Group 1710————10Total340————340Málaga B (loan)2013–14Tercera División Group 9141———4Appearances in Tercera División play-offs0181Logroñés2014–15Segunda División B Group 133100——2Appearances in Segunda División B promotion play-offs03512015–16Segunda División B Group 117020———190Total50120——20541Koper2015–16Slovenian PrvaLiga13100———1312016–17Slovenian PrvaLiga13021———151Total26121———282Piast Gliwice2017–18Ekstraklasa25310———2632018–19Ekstraklasa33610———3462019–20Ekstraklasa10——3Two appearances in UEFA Champions League, one appearance in UEFA Europa League01Appearance in Polish Super Cup050Total59920—3010659Brentford2019–20Championship1912010—1Appearances in Championship play-offs02312020–21Championship000010——10Total1912020—10241Legia Warsaw (loan)2020–21Ekstraklasa8010—2Appearances in Europa League010120AD Alcorcón (loan)2021–22Segunda División180————180De Graafschap (loan)2022–23Eerste Divisie18030———210Zagłębie Sosnowiec2023–24I liga25110———2612024–25II liga31210———322Total56320———583Znicz Pruszków2025–26I liga3000———30Znicz Pruszków II2025–26V liga Masovia Group 221————21Partyzant Leszno2025–26Liga okręgowa Warsaw Group 2140————1402026–27Liga okręgowa Warsaw Group 210————10Total150————153Career total3231714120509035318
Honours Piast Gliwice Ekstraklasa: 2018–19
Individual Ekstraklasa Player of the Year: 2018–19 Ekstraklasa Midfielder of the Year: 2018–19 Polish Union of Footballers Player of the Year: 2018–19 Polish Union of Footballers Team of the Year: 2018–19
References
External links
Joel Valencia at lapreferente.com